Quack-grass destroyer



April 6 ,1926. 1,579,406

, A. SKEN; l

4. QUAcx muss DESTROYER Filed sept. 14. 1922 `a. sheets-sheet 1 Tramway K` April (V 1926. A. SKENE QUAGK GRASS DESTROYER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 JNVENTQR I www any 4% Q .mm

' ATTURJYEY Patented Apr. 6, 1926i.

U IITEB STT ES 1,579,405 PATENT oFF-ICE..

ALEXANDER SKNE, 0F HOOPLE, NORTH DAKOTA. y

annex-GRASS DESTROYER.

i Application led September 14, 1922. Serial No. 588,128.

To all whom z5 may Concern.'

Beit known that I, ALEXANDER SKENE, a Vcitizen of they United States, residing at Hoople, in the county of YWalsh and State of North Dakota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements iirQliack-Grass Destroyers, of which the following is a speciL fieation.

My invention relates to quack grass destroyers and the object is to provide an efficient and economically operated device by which quack grass is uprooted, separated from the soil and` deposited on top of the ground from where it may oe subsequently removed and destroyed.

In the accompanying drawing; l

Fig. 1 is a topview of the preferred form of my device and the 'rear portion of a tractor towwhich it is attached.

Fig. 2 is a right hand side elevation of Fig. 1. y Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional detail as on line 3-3 in Fig. 1.

F i014 is a fragmentary perspeetive'view showing how the blades are secured on the front roller.

Referring to the drawing by reference numerals', 4 designates the main frame of my device which is of elongated rectangulai form and normally suspended above the ground in parallel relation thereto by a right hand bull wheel 5 and a left hand 'ground wheel (3 rotating on stub shafts 7 and 8, respectively, secured in right and left hand frame suspending castings 9 and 10,

To the front end 4a of the'frame 4 is secured a forwardly extending bifurcated cast-v ing 11. In the arms of said casting is a ally secured as at 14 to the draw bar hitchA member 15 on the Vrear end of a tractor 15 on which is the drivers seat 17.

In the front end of the frame 4 I mount a transversely arranged drum 18, keyed as at 19 on a shaft 2O (see Figs. y1 and 3). Said shaft is journaled in bearings 21 secured on the under side of the frame 4 and its right hand end is extended beyond the frame and carries a loosely mounted gear 22. Said gear has an loutwardly disposed hub with clutch jaws 23 adapted to be engaged by jaw members 24a of a slidably keyed clutch member-24 on the outer end of the shaft 20 for a purpose to be described.

yas at 30 to the inner side of the drive wheel 5. The gear 28 is rotatably mounted'on a stub shaft 31 of a bearing 31 secured on the frame. Opposite the lbull gear lsaid gear 28 meshes with gear 27 which is secured to a larger gear 26, both rotating on a stub shaft 32 secured in a casting 33 on the main frame. The forward teeth of gear 26 mesh with a small gear 25 loosely mounted on a stub shaft 35 in a casting 36 on the top of the frame and spaced above the previously mentioned gear 22 on the drum shaft 20 so that it meshes with said gear (see Fig. 2).

The object of increasing the speed ofthe last gear (22) in the train to a higher speed than that of the irst gear (28) is-to rotate the drum 18 at a certain predetermined speed with relation to the slowly revolving bull gear 29.

@n the face of the drum 18 I secure a number ofy staggered, radially extending and diagonally arranged hoeing blades 37 each of which is detachably bolted as at 38 in Fig. 4 to a bracket 39 permanently secured on the drum. These blades 37 are placed ohliquely with relation to the drum.

ground the sharp edge of the blades hoe the n* surface of the ground into fragments and,

Vby moving fast, throw the earth, together with the quack grass in it, upward and rearwardly onto the lower end of a rear- Vwardly and upwardly inclined carrier apron preferably made of two link belts 34 and spaced bars 40 held at their ends in said link belts. Said lower end of the endless carrier is guided on a roller 41 on a shaft 42 rotating in a bearing casting 43 (see Fig.v

Acasting' 50. A rearwardly and downwardly slanting board 51 is secured to and between the castings `5() in such a manner thatY it catches all the dirt and quack grass dropping from the upper run of the endless carrier 39, the slope of the board causing all of said dirt and quack grass to slide down to a threshing roller 52 transversely ar anged in the frame and having radial pegs 53. This roller is keyed on a shat't 5% rotatably mounted in frame brackets 55 and the right hand end ot.' said shatt is extended beyond the bracket and has secured to it a gear 56 meshing with gear t8 which rotates the roller in the direction ot arrow 57. This threshing roller serves to further break up the dirt, separating it from the quack grass, the dirt falling down from the rear side of the roller but the quack grass being thrown on a rearwardly extending fork or grate comprising lateral spaced tines 5S the forward ends of which are secured in a transverse rocker shaft 59 journaled in castings GO on the under side ot the main frame.

`When my machine in the operative position illustrated in Fig. 2 the above tines slope downwardly and rearwardlyv (as shown) thus depositing the quack grass and roots on top ot the ground. while any dirt which remains in the grass when hitting the grate drops down between the tines and thus gets under the grass. The shalt 59 may have an upwardly disposed rocker arm 59 at its right, hand end. At the upper end of said arm is pivotally secured the rear end oi a rod Gl the front end ol which is pivotally secured to a 'frame tilting lever (S2 mounted on the tractor platform and which will now be described.

The draw bar casting ll, previously mentioned, has its biturcated portion extended forwardly and upwardly and a crank shaft 63 `iournaled therein, said crank shaft having an upwardly extending lever arm 63a, and the crank portion normally extended forward and journaled in a slot (not shown) in a bearing G4 secured on the top of the draw bar 13. The tilting lever G2 is vertically disposed near the drivers seat and is pivoted as at (lo in a segmental toothed bracket 6G secured on the tractor platform. A link 6T connects this lever 62 to the lever arm (53 ot' the crank ($3. GS is a linger latch to engage or disengage the hand lever 62 and the toothed segment. G6.

Then the hand lever ($2 is pushed torward as to the dotted position (52, link 6T pulls on crank lever G3il which causes the Alront part of the crank to act as a tulcrum in the bracket (3f-l and the cra k shaft to raise the bracket ll and thereby the liront end ol the main trame l, whereby the cutting or digging roller 1S is disengaged from the ground. By moving the tilting lever (32 rearwardly the opposite result is secured, namely to drop the digging or plowing member as deeply into the ground as desired.

Then the front end of the main trame is raised, as described, the rear end will swing down and the grate 3S-45) would normally drag on the ground. To prevent this I have provided the previously mentioned arm 59 and rod (3l, the latter being connected to the tilting lever (32. Thus when the tilting lever is pushed forward, rod Gl pulls on the lever arm 59 and the tines 5S are raised to about the horizontal position shown dotted in Fig. 2.

(S9 is a clutch shifter lork engaging the clutch member 2l. lt is secured on the lower end otI a vertically arranged shaft Tl) journaled as at 'Tl on the main frame and Vforward ot the clutch member. A forwardly extending lever' 72 is tixed on the upper end ot shait TO and arranged to be within reach of the driver who can engage the clutch members on the drum slurt't 20 by merely pushing lever T2 to the right (see dotted lines in Fig. l).

lt is readily understood that the trains o1' gears, as shown, are always in mesh but the Ytorward gear 25 is loose on shalt 2() and leaves the plowing members or drum 18 idle until the clutch 2l- (which is slidahly keyed on said shaft Q0) is engaged with said gear. rSimilar clutch members (not shown) may be used to make other parts inoperative when the machine is drawn idle over the ground or on roads. but as such means may be used without departing l'rom the scope and spirit olE my invention I have not illustrated them.

That l claim is:

l. ln a quack grass destroyer, an elongated wheel-supported tiltahle frame, a digging roller in the 'l'ront end ot the trame and a disintegiating` roller in the rear end thereoi". an endless combined elevator and conveyor arranged to carry the dug soil to the rear roller. an inclined hoard guiding the conveyed soil trom the conveyor onto the disintegrating roller. and a normally inclined tiltable grate in the path ot the `soil leaving` the disintegrating roller. and means operable. from the liront end ol the trame tor tilting said grate.

ln a quark grass destroyer. an elongated wheel-su])ported tiltalde trame. a digging roller in the l'ront end o1" the trame and a disintegratingroller in the rear end thereoli. an endless combined elevator and conveyor arranged to carry the dug soil to the rear roller, an inclined hoard guiding the conveyed soil `t'roin the conveyor onto the dii-:integrating roller. and a tiltahle grate arranged in the path ot the dirt. leaving the disintegrating roller. and means operable i'rom the front end ot' the machine lor tilting the main Ytrame and the said tiltable grate.

Tn testimony whereoit l aix my .signature.

ALEXANDER SKENE.

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